President Biden is expected to have a call with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week, as per the White House calling the United States’ relationship with Beijing "one of the most consequential bilateral relationships in the world," as U.S. officials double down on their threats that China poses the greatest long-term threat to U.S. national security.

"This is one of the most consequential bilateral relationships in the world and one of the most important parts of the world," White House National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby said Tuesday.

Kirby said Biden and Xi would discuss "everything from the tensions over Taiwan to the war in Ukraine, as well as how we better manage competition between our two nations, certainly in the economic sphere."

"There’s a host of issues, and this is a discussion that, quite frankly, has been playing for a long time," Kirby said, noting that Biden and Xi have a "pretty robust agenda of things" to discuss.

The call between Biden and Xi comes as Pentagon and intelligence officials warn of the threat China poses to U.S. national security.
Assistant Secretary for Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner said Tuesday that it is "only a matter of time" before a "major incident or accident" occurs in the Indo-Pacific amid China’s "aggressive and irresponsible" behavior, saying that Beijing has "escalated tensions" with its neighbors in the region "at a pace unseen before."

FBI Director Christopher Wray earlier this month said China poses the "biggest long-term threat" to U.S. economic and national security.

Source: The Independent.